Do you know what will happen to your estate if you get into some kind of accident? Normally, an executor of your will is chosen to ensure that officials follow the contents of said will. However, a lack of a chosen executor will mean that role passes onto a family member.  

Even when going on a simple summer vacation, it’s important to consider what might happen if something goes wrong. This is especially important if you have family members relying on the financial security you provide.   

Here’s your guide to estate planning for summer vacations and how to get ahead of it.   

Establish Guardianship  

One of the first tasks on your estate planning checklist is to establish guardianship if you have children. If something were to happen to you or your spouse, it’s important to have someone lined up for this role.   

A guardian can take over the role of caring for your children until they turn 18. Whether or not the guardian has access to your assets during this time is up to you.   

Anyone can be designated a guardian, but you’ll want to discuss this decision with them beforehand.   

Understand the Laws of Intestacy  

Intestacy is the term for when a person dies without establishing a will. What this means for that person’s estate is that it goes through probate court to determine what happens to their leftover assets.   

In most cases, your spouse or children will inherit your assets. However, things are more complicated if you are not married or if you wish to leave everything to certain individuals.   

Healthcare Decisions  

Accidents can happen, no matter how careful you are. A healthcare directive or living will can help your family determine how to care for you if you are rendered incapacitated and cannot communicate.   

Ideally, you’ll have a designated healthcare proxy to make medical decisions on your behalf.   

Power of Attorney  

A power of attorney is a legal document that gives another person authority over your financial decisions. Like a healthcare proxy, this is to help in situations when you cannot make these decisions on your own.   

Beneficiary Designation  

Always double-check your beneficiary designations before leaving for vacation. You may place these designations on your life insurance policies, real property and other financial accounts to make sure certain individuals in your life get the money they are owed.   

If something happens to you, those designations will override any other instructions in your will. That means if your choice of beneficiary has changed in your will, you also need to reflect that in your other accounts.   

Estate Planning for Summer Vacations Made Easy  

Estate planning for summer vacations may seem like overkill, but it’ll come in handy if something bad happens on your trip. You wouldn’t want your assets getting distributed to the wrong people, after all.   

Mason Law and Planning Group provides the help you need when arranging trusts, wills, and business formations. We have over twenty years of experience working in the Colorado estate planning industry. Schedule a consultation today to learn more and tell us about your needs.